Are you wondering what 2017 might look like for Facebook marketing?
If the Facebook changes in 2016 are an indicator, 2017 will be an interesting year for Facebook marketers.
To get a grip on what the near future may look like, we tapped the knowledge of 19 social media pros.
#1: Paid Ads Come to Facebook Groups
Ian Cleary
I think Facebook will reduce the reach that Facebook groups get and introduce paid ads for groups. I rarely interact with pages and quite often interact with groups. As we move away from pages toward groups, Facebook will reduce the reach. It’s a perfect opportunity for Facebook to grow an additional advertising revenue stream.
Ian Cleary is the founder of RazorSocial, one of the world’s leading marketing technology sites focused on social media and content marketing.
#2: Facebook Launches Messenger Video Stories That Publish to News Feed
Joel Comm
The release of Snapchat-like functionality in Messenger demonstrates that Mark Zuckerberg is taking Snapchat seriously. These tools allow users to embellish videos and images with drawings, filters, and text and are currently available only as direct messages to individuals, although that will change.
In 2017, Facebook will allow Snapchat-like stories to be created in Messenger and then posted as videos to a personal or page feed.
Look for video stories to come to Facebook Messenger and the news feed.
Their tools for live video continue to evolve as well. With scheduled live videos, broadcasting from desktop, and trimming finished videos for better replays all slowly rolling out, this is just a step toward Facebook’s overall video strategy.
Expect to see more studio editing and post-production tools offered to Facebook Live users with the app and on desktop. Facebook’s goal is to provide content creators with the tools they need to create professional and polished content that will receive many replays.
In addition, I expect Facebook Live to start appearing on Smart TVs next to Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Hulu, as Facebook intends to position itself as a broadcast network.
Joel Comm is a live video expert.
#3: Facebook Develops End-to-end Sales Communication Tools for Messenger
Molly Pittman
Consumers now expect almost immediate communication with companies, and those who are willing to provide it will get the sale.
For example, I just signed a new apartment lease and guess what? All of my communication (setting up a tour to asking questions about amenities to signing the lease) was done through Facebook Messenger.
In 2017, Facebook will continue to develop and release products that facilitate the (almost) instant communication consumers are beginning to expect. The release of Facebook Messenger ads last November was just the beginning of the evolution.
Not only can these conversations be inexpensive to acquire, they also progress quickly because of the instantaneous nature of chat versus phone or email.
This Facebook Messenger ad campaign resulted in 300+ sales conversations for only $800.
Marketers who invest their time and human resources into educating prospects on these new touchpoints and overcoming their objections will be the ones who win.
Molly Pittman, VP of marketing at DigitalMarketer.com and host of the Perpetual Traffic podcast, is a leading expert on Facebook advertising and all things customer acquisition.
#4: Facebook Launches Its Own Cable TV Network
Mike Stelzner
With a news feed that’s nearly maxed out, Facebook will need to diversify into new media, much like Google has in recent years. Facebook has already indicated it will be introducing original programming on Facebook Live. All this is a setup for a much bigger media play.
I believe that Facebook will either purchase a major television network or start one of its own from scratch. They’ll target a high-profit niche like sports or consumer goods.
Facebook will develop a television channel.
If there was a Facebook channel on your TV, would you watch it?
Mike Stelzner is the founder and CEO of Social Media Examiner, founder of the Social Media Marketing Society, and author of the books Launch and Writing White Papers.
#5: Facebook Chatbots Centralize Sales and Customer Service
Alex Khan
More than one billion people are using Facebook’s Messenger every month, and my prediction is that Messenger bots will become a central part of customer service and sales processes.
Bots and AIs have typically performed a customer service role, answering queries and directing users toward helpful contacts and resources. Now they’re also used to facilitate or even initiate sales conversations.
In the near future, fans will only need to send a Facebook message on a company page to complete their purchase. For example, KLM Airlines uses a bot to help you book your flight, Fynd’s bot helps you buy clothes, and CNN’s bot gives you the latest news.
This Facebook Messenger chatbot helps customers find clothing to purchase.
Marketers should try to inform themselves about all that Facebook Messenger bots have to offer, and how to include bots in their customer service and sales strategy.
Furthermore, businesses should start convincing their fans to send them Facebook messages because as soon as contact is made, businesses are able to contact those people back at any time, and as often as they want. It’s similar to an email opt-in on a landing page, but the chance of someone reading a Facebook message is much higher than for opening a sales email.
To jumpstart the messaging process, brands should add a Message Us on Facebook button to their website or at least the contact page.
Alex Khan is CEO and founder of Attractive Media, a social and digital marketing agency based in Germany.
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